VERVE Books is a dynamic independent publisher of page-turning, diverse and original writing, based in the UK and led by a team of imaginative booklovers. Launched in 2018, our aim is to publish a wide range of compelling literature with a fresh and vital feel.
FORTHCOMING PRINT RELEASES
The Turner House brings us a colourful, complicated brood full of love and pride, sacrifice and unlikely inheritances. It's a striking examination of the price we pay for our dreams and futures, and the ways in which our families bring us home.
Blending biting social critique with an uncanny claustrophobia and the feverish pressure of 'influencer culture', After Care interrogates what happens behind the scenes of what we see on our screens and what that reflects back at us, the audience. It asks, in a world full of harm, is there any point in caring about anybody but yourself?
Bridging the gaps between contemporary gothic fiction, queer fiction and magical realism, Fragile Animals lures readers into Noelle's loose grasp on her world and immerses them in some of Scotland's most harsh and claustrophobic environments.
By turns tender and irreverent, the eleven genre-bending stories in Please Don't Touch the Body revel in the devastation - and power - of being alive today.
FORTHCOMING PRINT RELEASES
Angela FlournoyThe Turner House brings us a colourful, complicated brood full of love and pride, sacrifice and unlikely inheritances. It's a striking examination of the price we pay for our dreams and futures, and the ways in which our families bring us home.
Divya ManiarBlending biting social critique with an uncanny claustrophobia and the feverish pressure of 'influencer culture', After Care interrogates what happens behind the scenes of what we see on our screens and what that reflects back at us, the audience. It asks, in a world full of harm, is there any point in caring about anybody but yourself?
Genevieve JaggerBridging the gaps between contemporary gothic fiction, queer fiction and magical realism, Fragile Animals lures readers into Noelle's loose grasp on her world and immerses them in some of Scotland's most harsh and claustrophobic environments.
Emily DoyleBy turns tender and irreverent, the eleven genre-bending stories in Please Don't Touch the Body revel in the devastation - and power - of being alive today.
NEW AND FORTHCOMING EBOOK RELEASES
Available October 2026
Divya ManiarBlending biting social critique with an uncanny claustrophobia and the feverish pressure of 'influencer culture', After Care interrogates what happens behind the scenes of what we see on our screens and what that reflects back at us, the audience. It asks, in a world full of harm, is there any point in caring about anybody but yourself?
NEW AND FORTHCOMING EBOOK RELEASES
Divya ManiarBlending biting social critique with an uncanny claustrophobia and the feverish pressure of 'influencer culture', After Care interrogates what happens behind the scenes of what we see on our screens and what that reflects back at us, the audience. It asks, in a world full of harm, is there any point in caring about anybody but yourself?
CURRENT NEW RELEASES
A gripping gothic mystery that deepens across decades, All Her Beautiful Deaths is an exploration of classism and ownership in the art world, while beautifully portraying expressions of grief and love. Perfect for fans of Fingersmith by Sarah Waters and The Burial Plot by Elizabeth Macneal with echoes of Daphne du Maurier.
Art, ambition and desire collide when a struggling academic becomes entangled in the marriage and creative life of her literary idol.
Told in three distinct voices, Short War brings together a rapturous teenage love story set in Chile, the hunt for the author of an eye-opening literary detective story and a complex reckoning with American political intervention in South America.
From the highly acclaimed author of How Can I Help You comes a masterful domestic suspense novel that follows a 1960s housewife turned amateur photographer who begins to fear for her life when she notices the dark silhouette of a man in the background of her self-portraits.
CURRENT NEW RELEASES
A. RushbyA gripping gothic mystery that deepens across decades, All Her Beautiful Deaths is an exploration of classism and ownership in the art world, while beautifully portraying expressions of grief and love. Perfect for fans of Fingersmith by Sarah Waters and The Burial Plot by Elizabeth Macneal with echoes of Daphne du Maurier.
Laurie PetrouArt, ambition and desire collide when a struggling academic becomes entangled in the marriage and creative life of her literary idol.
Lily MeyerTold in three distinct voices, Short War brings together a rapturous teenage love story set in Chile, the hunt for the author of an eye-opening literary detective story and a complex reckoning with American political intervention in South America.
Laura SimsFrom the highly acclaimed author of How Can I Help You comes a masterful domestic suspense novel that follows a 1960s housewife turned amateur photographer who begins to fear for her life when she notices the dark silhouette of a man in the background of her self-portraits.
FEATURED AUTHORS
BACKLIST HIGHLIGHTS
A creeping story of sapphic obsession with Gothic undertones and a delicious mid-century feel, from the acclaimed author of Sunburn.
Tony, a Chinese-born engineer who immigrated to the U.S. to give his family a better life. His daughter, Tammy, who grapples with expectations surrounding a first-generation American, and Oliver, a charming, white lawyer with a dark family secret, who is continuously propelled towards Tammy and Tony, whether by fate or his choices...
DNA doesn't lie. But what if the truth is dangerous? Former police officer Dr Sian Love's life is thrown into chaos when a teenager shows up at her office, claiming to be Courtney Johnson - a child who went missing over fifteen years ago...
Two sisters. One fire. A secret that won't burn out. Steeped in intrigue and suspense, Sister of Mine is a powerhouse debut; a sharp, disquieting thriller written in stunning, elegant prose with a devastating twist.
BACKLIST HIGHLIGHTS
Chloe Michelle HowarthA creeping story of sapphic obsession with Gothic undertones and a delicious mid-century feel, from the acclaimed author of Sunburn.
Susie LuoTony, a Chinese-born engineer who immigrated to the U.S. to give his family a better life. His daughter, Tammy, who grapples with expectations surrounding a first-generation American, and Oliver, a charming, white lawyer with a dark family secret, who is continuously propelled towards Tammy and Tony, whether by fate or his choices...
Nicola MonaghanDNA doesn't lie. But what if the truth is dangerous? Former police officer Dr Sian Love's life is thrown into chaos when a teenager shows up at her office, claiming to be Courtney Johnson - a child who went missing over fifteen years ago...
Laurie PetrouTwo sisters. One fire. A secret that won't burn out. Steeped in intrigue and suspense, Sister of Mine is a powerhouse debut; a sharp, disquieting thriller written in stunning, elegant prose with a devastating twist.
VERVE BOOKS - NEWSLETTER
We are primarily asking you for simple contact details - name, email etc. That is so we can get in touch with you. This information is all securely held and processed through a third-party, MailerLite. It is not held or stored in any way on our servers. It is not, nor will it ever be, shared with any other company, group or individual.
MailerLite is a reputable email marketing software company that enables us to manage our email newsletter. Your record on MailerLite will tell us when you subscribed, when you were emailed, if you looked at the email, if you opened any links in the email. This is not meant to be intrusive, just to help us put together better, more engaging emails in the future.
If at any time you are curious to see what data we're holding on you, then you are welcome to ask us to supply that (simply use our contact form) and we'll send you that information.
If at any time in the future you decide it's not for you, you can simply click on the unsubscribe link at the bottom of your newsletter, or you can contact us through our contact form on this site asking to be removed from the mailing list. In either case all your details will be removed entirely from the database, not mothballed, put into storage or shuffled slightly over to the left, just removed.
NEWS AND VIEWS
My Favourite Fictional Power Dynamics
In my latest novel, The Rayburn Affair, I’m exploring power dynamics again, and this time they are set against the academic and publishing worlds, in a friendship and in a marriage, in public and private... If I was building a book playlist for novels that compliment The Rayburn Affair and prepare the imagination for reading it, these are my top recommendations.
THE INSPIRATION BEHIND SHORT WAR BY LILY MEYER
Lily Meyer, author of SHORT WAR, talks inspiration behind her debut novel, US intervention and Latin American history.
Message from the editors of Queerphoria
Queerphoria is out in paperback and eBook, and we cannot stress enough how much of a pleasure it has been putting it together for you all. To see the incredible stories, essays, poems and reflections that have stemmed from such a broad brief all collated into one anthology has been so rewarding, creatively and personally.
Most anticipated queer reads of 2026
Happy Pride Month! From the team and some of our queer VERVE authors, we're bringing you our most anticipated LGBTQIA reads for 2026. Buckle up and find the next book to add to your TBR.NEWS AND VIEWS
My Favourite Fictional Power Dynamics
In my latest novel, The Rayburn Affair, I’m exploring power dynamics again, and this time they are set against the academic and publishing worlds, in a friendship and in a marriage, in public and private... If I was building a book playlist for novels that compliment The Rayburn Affair and prepare the imagination for reading it, these are my top recommendations.
THE INSPIRATION BEHIND SHORT WAR BY LILY MEYER
Lily Meyer, author of SHORT WAR, talks inspiration behind her debut novel, US intervention and Latin American history.
Message from the editors of Queerphoria
Queerphoria is out in paperback and eBook, and we cannot stress enough how much of a pleasure it has been putting it together for you all. To see the incredible stories, essays, poems and reflections that have stemmed from such a broad brief all collated into one anthology has been so rewarding, creatively and personally.
Most anticipated queer reads of 2026
Happy Pride Month! From the team and some of our queer VERVE authors, we're bringing you our most anticipated LGBTQIA reads for 2026. Buckle up and find the next book to add to your TBR.